SERVICED APARTMENTS

Serviced Apartments can provide the perfect stepping stone from arrival to permanent home – balancing space, privacy and value with service, flexibility and ease of use.

What exactly is a “Serviced Apartment”?

The Association of Serviced Apartment Providers (ASAP) defines a serviced apartment as a room or set of rooms fitted especially with typical residential apartment facilities (individual fully fitted kitchen, bathroom, etc.) which can be leased or rented as a separate and independent dwelling and for which the cost of the majority of the services (council tax, electricity, water etc.) is included in the weekly or monthly charge. Of course the standards will vary as much as people's expectations and budgets and the cost will vary depending on these standards as well as where the apartments are located. In terms of space, compared to a hotel looking to appeal to similar clientele, a guest will usually find that they have about twice the area in an apartment for about half the cost of a hotel – so in space terms alone - that's four times the value!!

For example in central London £250.00 per night should buy a 200 sq ft room in a hotel compared to just £125.00 per night (£875.00 per week), which should secure a 400sq ft apartment to a similar standard. But of course £'s per square foot is not by any means the only advantage of a serviced apartment over a hotel room.

Many people still try to put hotels and serviced apartments in the same box, but in fact the two forms of accommodation cater for very different requirements. In a survey carried out amongst visiting overseas business travellers in the UK in early 2007, 84% of respondents said that for any stay greater than 4 nights they would prefer the privacy, space and value provided by a serviced apartment over that of a hotel.

Clearly this assumes similar standards of accommodation and this is something that has historically been difficult to ascertain. Last year all ASAP members agreed to adopt a quality assessment standard that was designed by the association in partnership with Quality in Tourism. (Quality in Tourism is the independent body responsible for the quality standard for Visit Britain, the body previously know as the British Tourist Board, across all areas of accommodation in the UK from hotels to campsites).This standard not only allows a guest, booker, travel coordinator or relocation agent to accurately assess the delivered standard of quality and compare those standards across other types of accommodation in different assessment categories, it also assures a level of compliance across ever more important areas such as safety, legality and contract.

Where does the serviced apartment industry fit in for Relocatees?

People looking to relocate to the UK often consider serviced apartments as a stepping stone en route to their long-term home for a number of reasons:

Hassle free accommodation – They can move in without complications and not get distracted by administrative issues relating to their accommodation and hence get on with the task in hand of finding their new home

Space to live a bit more comfortably whilst they research and prepare for the arrival of their belongings and their big move to their new home. Also a more appropriate living environment if they are arriving complete with partners and children

Due to the value factors mentioned earlier, relocatees can afford to spend a bit more time considering their longer-term accommodation options and getting to know their surroundings – this will inevitably lead to a more satisfactory final move

If relocatees don't know the country, city or town to where they are destined, a serviced apartment enables them to live close to their work making it easy to visit prospective long term accommodation and to meet and travel with their partner/family.

Taking the decision to start by living close to the workplace has some other interesting advantages:

Individuals can take an unbiased view of the area and can prospect their future living requirements from a much larger area. The tendency otherwise is simply to consider places between the place of work and the initial place of residence, or to just consider somewhere “that I've heard is nice”. A classic example was the number of Americans who on relocating to London choose Notting Hill simply having heard of or having seen the film by the same name – only to find it expensive, cliquey, fat away from their work colleagues

During the first unsettling days the relocatee is closer to their partner/family and can spend more time with them discussing plans and requirements – rather than travelling to and from their place of work for larger parts of the day

The “service” component of the serviced apartment is probably of more importance than any other single factor and is often overlooked by the employer, who may choose the option that has the cheaper weekly rent, rather than considering the hidden additional costs and the value of the employee and their family's happiness in the those first few weeks of the relocation process

During the initial days of settling into a new job, a new culture and a new life, the last thing anybody needs is to be barraged with bureaucracy and processes involved in signing up for their utilities and services, having to purchase those silly little “vital” items like potato peelers and cork screws – because their luggage has not arrived. Yet they do need a “permanent” address – to set up bank accounts – sort out their mobile phones – rent cars etc

A serviced apartment can provide all of this, and any ASAP Member Company (who has to have their apartment's quality rated in order to be a member) will deliver this and most probably considerably more.

Things to look out for when booking a serviced apartment in the UK

Try to book directly with the company that owns and manages the property you'll be living in. They will know more about it than anyone else and be in a better position to help you solve any problems or issues you experience during your stay and be able to advise on local amenities and attractions

Look to see if the provider is a member of the ASAP. If they are, you will know that they are committed to the highest standards of customer satisfaction, have flexible terms and are accountable for what they provide to an independent assessor

Look for the new Quality Standard Stars – for “Serviced Apartments” – not self-catering accommodation or “hotel equivalent” but the real thing. As issued by Visit Britain and Quality in Tourism

Get them to send/email you their terms and conditions – so you understand where you stand in respect of the cancellation and/or early departure

Find out what extras you're likely to be hit with – good service providers should provide most things for free such as broadband internet, satellite television, weekly cleaning and laundry service etc.

However, you should expect to pay for:

Personal Laundry

Taxis to and from the airport

Pay-per-view movies

Telephone calls you make. It is worth considering that if you expect to make a lot of calls then check to see if they are being marked up like hotels (many providers don't charge more than cost price and some even offer significant discounts on overseas calls so you can ring home in comfort).

Establish what “goodies” will be in the apartment when you arrive – “starter packs” vary enormously and well thought out provisions can make settling in to your new “home” easier. Some companies will provide you with many of the essentials like Washing powder and and dish washer tablets to Beer and wine and your first meal. This will avoid having to rush out before you've unpacked to find the nearest supermarket.

Find out if you will be met on arrival and shown how things work by a member of the company who knows your accommodation well – or if you'll just be expected to pick up the keys and sort yourself out.

Making the decision to stay in a quality serviced apartment should prove to be one of the best decisions in ensuring a comfortable and effective relocation process.